And so it begins, the first annual Sint Maarten Aviation Photography Competition has started.

At least 15 participants have registered for this fist time event which runs from March 17th to 23rd. All involved must stay on the island the entire week (which could get a bit pricey this time of year) and be present for judging and prize presentation which could be the reason for lack of participation. All registration fees will be donated to support the Breast Cancer Awareness Program on Sint Maarten.

The Competition rules are pretty simple, images must be taken between March 18th and March 22nd and the aircraft pictured must be depicted with a St Maarten Theme in the background, que all images with large planes and pretty ladies in the background.

Each participant is allowed to enter a maximum of three images. The grand prize winner will take home $2,500USD. The best 6 photos will be exhibited at SXM airport for the next four months.

As for this photographer, I could not make it down for the event so I leave you with my best images from SXM.

Most people come to St Maarten's Maho beach to watch planes pass several feet above their heads, but others come for the extra thrill of standing several yards behind a jumbo jet as it throttles to full power going down the runway.